Maternal blood parameters and risk of neonatal pathological jaundice: a retrospective study

This study aims to investigate the association between maternal blood parameters and the risk of neonatal pathological jaundice. A retrospective case-control study of 1309 newborns and their mothers from 2019 to 2020 in a single-center tertiary hospital. All mothers received a complete routine blood test prior to delivery, and outcome was neonatal pathological jaundice. We performed stepwise logistic regression modeling to identify maternal blood factors associated with neonatal pathological jaundice. 258 neonates (19.71%) were diagnosed with pathological jaundice. Logistic regression results showed that the odds ratio for pathological jaundice in neonates of mothers with high white blood cell (WBC) count was 1.512 (95% CI 1.145-1.998; P=0.004). Besides, neonates whose mothers had a high mean corpuscular volume (MCV) during pregnancy doubled the odds of developing pathological jaundice (OR=1.967; 95% CI 1.043-3.711; P=0.037). Among neonates, those whose mothers had high levels of WBC count and MCV were at increased risk of pathological jaundice. Regular obstetric examinations and routine blood tests are essential to initiate adapted care.